Michigan

Michigan advances five wrestlers as Luke bounces back

AUBURN HILLS - After falling in a surprising first-round upset earlier in the day, it was up to Steve Luke to ensure all five University of Michigan wrestlers would stay alive Thursday at the 2007 NCAA Division I wrestling championships.

Luke did just that, pulling out a tough 3-2 victory in the evening session over North Carolina-Greensboro's 174-pounder Joseph Lowe that left Michigan coach Joe McFarland shaking his head in relief.

"At this point, hey, it's just about winning," McFarland said. "You're doing anything you can do to get your hand-raised now."

Luke's early loss was the Wolverines' only of the day as Josh Churella (149 pounds), Eric Tannenbaum (165), Tyrel Todd (184) and Nick Roy (197) each won twice to reach Friday morning's quarterfinals.

The four Wolverine wrestlers in the championship bracket now need to win only one more match to finish in the top eight and earn All-America honors. Michigan finished the first day tied for 16th place with 14 points, but was one of only seven teams with four or more wrestlers alive in the winners bracket.